21 292
21
VOROShILOVGRAD
guys,” Kocha said. “Our guys
hook them up with Chinese-
made bathroom fixtures,
they take them across the
border, repackage them in
Rostov, and then ship them
out to China, passing them off
as Italian-made. Remember,
Herman, business and faith
go hand in hand.”
“Sure.”
“They come to our services
sometimes, take some of
our pamphlets, donate some
money to our church. But
it’s not just about that the
money.”
“Really?”
“Of course. We have to
spread God’s word. Who else
should we be spreading it to?
Why not them?”
“What sort of creeddoes their
presbyter preach, anyway?”
“None that I know of, he just
does things his own way. All
that matters is that you’re
at peace with yourself …
and that you keep your feet
warm,” Kocha said, tucking
his ailing body underneath
the blanket.
They came by to pick me up
early Saturday morning. I put
on Kocha’s dark blue suit,
laced up a pair of worn boots,
and hopped in the car. If I had
known from the get-go how
the trip was going to play out,
I probably would have been
a bit more cautious. But who
could have guessed how it
was all going to go down, and
what kind of trouble we were
going to get ourselves into?
When you’re taking life by the
horns you don’t really think
about the consequences of
your actions.
_____